1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to the general field of holders for coins, charms, and similar objects. In particular, it provides a new and improved holder for carrying a telephone token that is easily available for use in an emergency.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is commonplace for adults to give children a quarter when they leave home with instructions to save it for a phone call in case of an emergency. The problem is always how to ensure that the child will not lose the quarter in the meantime. Accordingly, people resort to hiding it in a special pocket, a shoe, or other supposedly safe place. Usually, though, the quarter is lost by the time it becomes needed.
Therefore, it would be very desirable to have a secure coin or token holder that could be worn on a chain and that made it possible for a child to easily free the coil for use when needed.
Conventional hardware exists for carrying coins, stones and charms on a chain, either on a bracelet or a necklace, but it always involves some form of permanent fastener to hold the ornamental piece in place. The result is that the piece cannot be released without the use of a tool or, in the case of spring-loaded snap-type latches, without the strength of an adult to open the latch. Thus, these holders are not suitable for the purposes intended here, which mainly are to provide a coin or token holder with a quick release for use, especially by a child, to make a phone call in case of an emergency.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,358,262 to Suess (1944) describes a bill clip that in one embodiment includes a clamping ring for encasing a coin for ornamental purposes as well as for providing extra money for emergencies. The coin is held in place by the pressure exerted around its rim by a fastener tied to two open ends of the ring. Therefore, the fastener has to be opened before the coin can be released, requiring the kind of effort that this invention is designed to eliminate.